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HINDU
A Geographical Country or a
Religion?

© Sadhu Chellappa
1st edition (English) 2016
Original Title: இந்து −
நான் வாழும் நாடு இந்து நாடா? இந்து மத நாடா?

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Content
Page
Preface 4
Introduction 5
Foreword by J.D. Baskara Doss 12
Hindu – a geographical location
or a religion? 16
The emergence of Hinduism 24
The emergence of Hindutva 31
How foreigners made themselves 35
the new locals
The subterfuge of Sankara Matha 38
Debunking false beliefs 40
Early Indian thought and literature 47
Conclusion 53
Appendix I 54
Appendix II 55
Arya Dharma 57
Glossary 58

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Preface

Dear readers,
“Vanakkam” (Greetings) to you.

When the new government took over the rule of India in 2014,
bright rays of light shone in the eyes of our Indian people looking
towards a better future.

Instead of fulfilling the hopes that the political parties promised in
their election campaign speeches, they are now zealously keeping
busy debating religion and changing India into a Hindu religious
country. Actually, “India,” the English name given to the
civilization that flourished in the basins of River Sindhu (Indus),
means just that – Hindu. It does not indicate any particular religion,
but a geographical location: the land around and beyond the River
Sindhu (Indus).

Some of those who hold high offices in the government are striving
hard to turn India into a Hindu religious country. Recently, one of
the members of the parliament from a major religion declared that
minority people groups cause religious riots. Belonging to a major
religion himself, he spoke convincingly to protect our country and
its major religion. Such instigative declaration makes one to
question:

What is more important?
Religion or the precious lives of the people?
The Hindu religion or the nation in the Indus region?

In this booklet, I try to bring together the opinions of many scholars,
political leaders and of my own in regards to what our nation is
going through at this hour. I welcome your valuable comments and
responses.

For the love of my people, in their service,
Sadhu Chellappa.
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Introduction
When the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), (Indian People’s Party),
won the last democratic elections in our nation in 2014, many
people rejoiced, some feared, some got irritated, and some even
doubted. Among those who feared were the Christians and the
Muslims. They assumed this would mean more religious
disturbances during the rule of a Hindu political government. Some
of the reasons for such assumptions are the recent bomb incidents in
Coimbatore and Mumbai, the anti-Christian attacks in Gujarat
during Christmas celebrations, the demolishing of church buildings
in different parts of the country or the killings of Christian
community leaders in Odissa. In 1999 the news of Graham Staines,
an Australian Christian missionary, froze the hearts of many people
with utter fear. He was helping lepers and the poor tribal people in
Mayurbhanj, but was mercilessly burnt to death along with his sons,
aged 10 and 6, while they were sleeping in his station wagon at
Manoharpur village in Keonjhar district in Odissa, while his wife
and daughter stayed back in Mayurbhanj. All these happened during
the rule of the Indian National Congress Party.

Even the Congress Party that was ruling then was unable to restrain
or demolish such horrible inhumane acts. All of us remember the
religious drunkenness that was raging during those days. But now,
the government of our country has been given in the hands of hard
line Hindu nationalist groups, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
(Indian People’s Party), and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS,
National Voluntary Service Society). They did not only make Chief
Minister of Gujarat, Mr. Modi to become the Prime Minister of
India, but also formed coalitions with several other political parties
that have given cause to concern and fear in people.

It is a known fact that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru banned RSS as a
group, soon after he took over the leadership in the newly
Independent India. In spite of being banned three times before in
India, slowly, but steadily, in the name of social service and reform,
the RSS group has infiltrated its philosophy into the Indian people
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through different RSS affiliated organizations for a new “Hindu”
India, which has been the reason for many communal riots.

The Christian community in
The Catholic Bishops Conference of India
different parts of India has (CBCI) wants to give Prime Minister Narendra
been praying for the 2014 Modi a “chance” and not pre-judge him
because of his record as the Gujarat Chief
election. Without any one Minister or his association with the Rashtriya
particular party in mind, Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

they prayed that the one,
A day after he met Mr. Modi in the capital,
whom God wills, shall be CBCI president Cardinal Baselios Cleemis on
Tuesday said the Church preferred to take the
the new Indian Prime
Prime Minister’s call for a 10-year-moratorium
Minister. Mr. Modi received on communalism seriously rather than the
an overwhelming majority ‘Hindutva-subsumes-all-other-identities’
statement of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.
of the votes and had a
landslide victory. Soon after, Admitting that Mr. Bhagwat’s statements did
create anxiety, he said undue weightage should
religious riots took place
not be given to the personal opinion of one
here and there. On the 19th person.

of August, 2014, Prime
Asked about the apprehensions that minorities
Minister Modi met with had about Mr. Modi in the past, his refrain was:
CBCI president, Cardinal “Mr. Modi has just begun his administration as
the head of the government at the Centre. It is
Baselios Cleemis and next sensible and legitimate that any government
day the daily newspaper, needs time to settle down and work out its
policies. He has been elected and we have to
The Hindu published an
see his actions. We are optimistic.”
article, which gave some http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/give-modi-a-
chance-church/article6332588.ece
comfort to the Indian
Christian community. NEW DELHI, August 20, 2014

Later, on the 30th and 31st of August 2014, a BJP Member of
Parliament from Gorakhpur, Yogi Adityanath, provoked religious
enmity by saying, “In places where there are 10-20 per cent
minorities, stray communal incidents take place”. The minority
community in the country were utterly shocked to hear such
statements from prominent political leaders and protested.
You can read those news-clips below.
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Published: August 31, 2014 03:02 IST

BJP MP links riots to minorities

Firebrand BJP leader Yogi Adityanath has attacked the minority community, saying riots
happen wherever they are more than 20 per cent in number at a place.

Defending his provocative speeches, the Gorakhpur MP, who is among the three party
leaders entrusted with leading the BJP campaign for the coming by-elections in Uttar
Pradesh, said Hindus would reply “in the same language” if they were subjected to attacks or
forcible conversions.

Talking about communal riots, he told Rajat Sharma in ‘Aap Ki Adalat’ programme on India
TV that there are three categories of places where they occur, according to a press release
issued by the channel.

“In places where there are 10 to 20 per cent minorities, stray communal incidents take place.
Where there are 20 to 35 per cent of them, serious communal riots take place, and where
they are more than 35 per cent, there is no place for non-Muslims,” he said. The BJP leader
is under attack after two CDs recently surfaced in which he is shown making inflammatory
speeches.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/bjp-mp-yogi-adityanath-links-riots-to-
minorities/article6365614.ece
© The Hindu

Published: September 1, 2014 03:30 IST

Adityanath’s remarks on minorities draw flak

Comments made by Yogi Adityanath, MP, on minorities drew flak from the Opposition

parties even as the Bharatiya Janata Party distanced itself from them.

Speaking to a Hindi news channel on Saturday, the five-time Gorakhpur MP, one of the
three leaders named by the BJP to lead its Uttar Pradesh by-election campaign, said: “In
places where there are 10-20 per cent minorities, stray communal incidents take place;
where there are 20-35 per cent of them, serious communal riots take place; and where they
are more than 35 per cent, there is no place for non-Muslims.”

Congress spokesman Sanjay Jha said: “This is an orchestrated and systematic strategy of the
BJP to polarise voters before the polls. They are targeting not just U.P. but also hoping for a
pan-India impact. The fact is that the BJP made Adityanath officially speak for the party

during the debate on communal violence in Parliament. This shows that their communal
agenda will not be compromised whether in Opposition or government.”

Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh and BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told The
Hindu that rioters had no religion. “In riots no one is Hindu or Muslim. Unfortunately,
secular political parties have changed secularism to communalism. The party [the BJP]
never connects religion with riots,” he said. Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla and

BJP spokesman M.J. Akbar, both former Congress MPs, refused to comment.
Senior CPI leader Atul Anjan, speaking on the phone from Gorakhpur, said that despite the
“love-hate relationship” between Mr. Adityanath and the BJP, his comments had revealed

why he was made the party’s poll mascot. “He is being used by top leaders, including the
PM, to saffronise U.P. His obnoxious comments have vulgarised political discourse and go
against the spirit of the Constitution,” he said.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/adityanaths-remarks-on-minorities-draw-
flak/article6367630.ece

© The Hindu
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Published: September 12, 2014 00:43 IST
Vinay Kumar

EC raps Adityanath for hate speech

The Election Commission on Thursday reprimanded BJP MP from Gorakhpur Yogi
Adityanath for “provoking religious enmity” and warned him to be careful while making
public utterances during election campaigns.

The EC held that the BJP leader had violated the Model Code of Conduct.

In its order, the EC said Mr. Adityanath, while delivering a speech in Noida, U.P. on
September 7, “invoked religion” and “made appeal on the ground of religion to secure votes
for his party.”

The Commission said that the speech had the effect of provoking feelings of enmity or
hatred between different classes of the citizens on grounds of religion, race, caste,
community or language and also aggravated the existing differences or created mutual
hatred or caused tension between different castes and communities.

It rejected the averment in the BJP leader’s reply that his speech, in totality, aimed at the
objective of complete religious harmony.

The EC also directed the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of U.P. to intimate it if any FIR has
been filed in the matter.

The EC asked the CEO to direct the district authorities concerned to file a case under
Section 125 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and Section 153A, Section 295A
and Section 505 of the Indian Penal Code against Mr. Adityanath.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/election-commission-raps-yogi-adityanath-for-hate-
speech/article6402034.ece
© The Hindu

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Indus, not Hindus
Published: August 30, 2014 04:26 IST
Since ancient days, those who Gargi Parsai
live outside of India called
I used the word Hindi not Hindu,
those who live inside of India
says Najma
Indians, Indies or Indus, those
who live in the Indus Valley Union Minority Affairs Minister Najma
Heptulla on Friday attempted to quash the
and beyond the river Sindh. controversy triggered by her remark that all
An unfortunate statement citizens could be called Hindu, clarifying
that her reference was to the historic term
from the Union Minority
“Hindi’’ which, she said, had been used for
Affairs Minister, Najma centuries as an identity of nationality.

Heptulla, that all Indian
Speaking to The Hindu, Ms. Heptulla said:
citizens can be called Hindus, “I have not spoken about Hindu. All I am
raised unnecessary concern. saying is that since 2000 years, Hindustan is
called Hind in Arabic and those living here
But after carefully clarifying are called Hindi. Anything beyond the Hindu
her statement (see the Kush mountains and on this side of the
Sindh river is Hind. It is a geographical
newspaper clip), this issue
indication and a historical name. People have
was safely settled. used it in music and in poems. Mohammad
Iqbal has used it in our national song [Hindi

hai hum, watan hai Hindustan hamara].”
Sindhu, Hindu and Hindustan Ms. Heptulla’s remark triggered a wave of
are all names given to the protest with the Opposition terming it as
“unfortunate.”
many different people groups But would Muslims like to be called Hindi?
that settled in the Indus plains. “Why not? When they go for Haj to Saudi
Arabia they are called Hindi. In Europe their
The Hindu or the Indus
identity is Indian. In our country our
territory stretched between the nationality is Indian, Hindustani or
Bharatiya. Muslims or Christians in Bharat
rivers Sarasvati and Sutlej.
will be called Bharatiya. There is no need to
(Only around 90 of the more create a controversy.”
than 800 known Indus Valley
Congress spokesman Manish Tewari said
archeological sites are every citizen of the country is a “Bharatiya”
discovered so far on the Indus and not Hindu.
The BJP said the controversy should be over
and its tributaries.) The word
after Ms. Heptulla’s clarification.
“India” is derived from the http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/i-used-the-
word-hindi-not-hindu-says-
Indus River. In ancient times, najma/article6363651.ece
“India” initially referred to © The Hindu

those geographical regions immediately along the east bank of the
Indus. “India” meant Indus settlements. The inhabitants of the
Indus region were diverse in ethnicity, religion, national and
language. One of the many religions that existed in the Indus region
is the religion of Hindu. Therefore, the term “Hindu” country refers
to the region where the Indus civilization settled and later expanded.
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It absolutely does not mean that those who live in Hindu land are
automatically Hindus, meaning the religion.

Without a thorough research of Indian history, some political parties
are intensely involved in trying to change the Hindu land into a
Hindu religious land, causing unnecessary religious riots and fear
among the minority groups of Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs
and others. The minority people groups expect the Prime Minister of
India, the Land of the Indus, Mr. Modi, to handle such dire issues
with much wisdom and discretion.

Published: August 18, 2014 01:06 IST Published: August 18, 2014 20:16 IST
Omar Rashid National Bureau

Hindutva is India’s identity, says Bhagwat Hindutva claim under fire
Bhagwat. Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan
“It has the capacity to ‘swallow’ other Bhagwat came under fire on Monday for his
identities … need to restore those controversial description of India as a “Hindu
capacities” nation,” with several political parties and Sikh
radicals taking exception to his remarks.
Days after asking why all Hindustanis
Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh
(Indians) should not be referred to as launched a scathing attack on the RSS leader
“Hindus,” Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
(RSS) sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat on through a series of tweets. “I thought we had one
Hitler in [the] making but it seems now we have
Sunday minced no words in stating that Two! God save India!” Mr. Singh, who has been
“Hindutva is the identity of India and it
has the capacity to swallow other publicly critical of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, tweeted.
identities.” “We just need to restore those

capacities.”
He followed it up with a poser for the RSS chief:

Addressing a gathering at the golden “A question to Mohan Bhagwat - Is Hindutva a
religious identity? What is its relationship with
jubilee celebrations of the Vishwa Hindu Sanatan Dharma? Is a person who believes in
Parishad (VHP), Mr. Bhagwat called
upon Hindus to initiate “social change Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism
or any other religion also a Hindu? Would Mohan
from home.” With the programmes of the Bhagwatji please clarify?” He also exhorted the
VHP, the Hindu Samaj would rise in the
next 10-20 years and find its “rightful RSS to “stop fooling the innocent people by
using religion in politics”.
place” as world leader, he said.

Sikh ire
Describing the Ram temple movement as
the defining moment of the VHP’s 50 The Dal Khalsa, a radical Sikh organisation, in a
statement said it would not allow the RSS to
years of existence, Mr. Togadia said: “Till implement its “fascist agenda in Punjab” and foil
Ram Mandir is constructed, we [Hindus]
won’t have sammaan in the country.” its attempt to divide Hindus and Sikhs on
communal lines. “We have no objection to its
dream of a Hindu Rashtra, but Punjab will not be

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/hi part of it,” the statement added.
ndutva-is-indias-identity-says- http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/rss-chief-under-
bhagwat/article6326416.ece fire/article6329192.ece
© The Hindu © The Hindu

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